


Finding the Light

by Devairkus



Category: The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Ending, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:20:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25809493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Devairkus/pseuds/Devairkus
Summary: What would have happened if Ellie had missed Owen and Mel in the aquarium, and then gone back to Jackson? With Owen alive, would Abby and Lev have a different fate when they reached Santa Barbara? How would have the encounter with the Rattlers have gone?A one-shot AU where people's lives are a little less miserable, and the ending part of the game is avoided. M for language and violence.
Relationships: Abby & Lev (The Last of Us), Abby/Owen (The Last of Us)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 58





	Finding the Light

Ellie had been disappointed by not finding Abby at the aquarium. Then not long after she arrived, Jesse and Tommy showed up there as well, looking for her. They convinced her enough was enough, and to come back to the theater. Ellie almost refused, but feeling a shift in her gut, grudgingly agreed. The next day for the sake of Dina, the four traveled home to Jackson.

Owen hadn’t made it halfway to the Scars’ island before coming upon Abby and Lev on their way back from there. He had told Mel to go back with Alice to the WLF, that it was over and he was going to make sure Abby, Lev, and Yara made it back. _What a mess_ , he knew that by doing that, his and Mel’s relationship was done. But, it was going to be better that way for all of them. When Owen had set off and fixed the boat, unknowingly to him he had just missed a trespasser that had given up and returned back to her base.

Owen felt a wave of relief once he spotted Abby’s familiar silhouette and a smaller figure in the small boat he approached. His relief was then hit with a wave of guilt seeing Yara was not with them. _I should have just gone with them in the first place._

“Need a ride?” He called, slowing the boat.

Abby and Lev paddled over and made their way onto his sailboat and he turned it back towards Aquarium. 

“Yara didn’t make it?” He asked Abby.

Abby shook her head and wrapped an arm around Lev, who looked devastated.

Owen sailed the boat in silence for the rest of the way back, he wanted to ask about the Scars’ island which was currently on fire and about what exactly had happened, but he knew now wasn’t the time.

Owen docked the boat back at the aquarium before revealing his plans to the two.

“So uh, I think we should leave for Santa Barbara tomorrow if we can. The WLF is gonna come after us sooner or later so we should just leave while we can.”

“The WLF is gonna be disorganized after tonight. They were getting their asses kicked by the Seraphites, and Isaac’s dead. Yara killed him,” informed Abby

“Wow really? Shit.” replied Owen, rubbing his neck and thinking about Mel who he sent back to the WLF’s stadium. _It’s not like the Scars will be able to penetrate the base. Plus, with Isaac gone, no one will know or care about Mel’s involvement with me and Abby defecting. They’d have bigger things to worry about. She’s still safest there._

“Okay, well are you good leaving tomorrow?” he asked.

Abby sighed and shook her head, “Mel wouldn’t want me there.”

“Mel isn’t coming. We’re done. She went back to the base with Alice. They’re better off being there.”

Abby stared at him in stunned silence, “Wait, really?” She seemed like she was going to say more on the matter but didn’t.

“I want to go to Santa Barbara. I want to meet the Fireflies.” Lev spoke up.

Abby looked at Lev softly, after a moment she said, “Okay. Where you go I will.” She looked at Owen and nodded. “Tomorrow.”

  
  


They had packed the boat full of supplies and set out down the coast three days ago. Owen admitted it had been a bit awkward. He was trying his best to cheer up Lev with his jokes, which luckily worked sometimes. Abby was being a bit short with him and Owen wished that this hadn’t ended up being such a mess, but it was what it was.

He just hoped Abby could finally rest now. She had gotten her revenge, but he knew it took something from her. However, no matter who she had grown into, Owen knew he’d always love Abby.

Most of their friends from the Salt Lake Crew were likely dead from the trespassers that infiltrated before they had left. Owen learned that Abby had seen Manny get shot in the face by one of them. They were probably hunting him and Abby as well, and maybe they’d just missed them. That thought really shook him. 

Abby was looking over the edge of the boat into the sea, her long hair which was normally braided was loose for once, flying in the wind. _She looks so beautiful like that,_ he thought.

Then, an idea sprung. “Hey Lev, wanna steer the boat?” Lev looked up from the book he was reading, and for once he had on an expression that wasn’t one of sadness but one of excitement.

“Come here, it’s not tough at all, I’ll show you,” Owen invited, and Lev put down his book and headed over. Owen gestured to Lev to take the wheel.

“You could just hold it still, but if we’re headed too close or far from the coast, just turn it a little- yeah you got it. Not sharply, yeah that’s perfect. You know what? You can be captain for the afternoon.” 

“Cool,” said Lev, with a grin. Owen looked over at Abby towards the front of the boat, who was looking over her shoulder smiling at them. But, when she caught him looking, Abby turned back towards the sea.

 _That’s no matter_ , thought Owen. _Time to execute Phase 2._ Owen went in the cabin and retrieved a piece of paper and pencils from Max’s old art stash, as well as a hardcover book to draw on top of. Moving to the back of the boat near where Lev was steering, Owen began sketching out Abby’s silhouette. Lev leaned over after a minute to see what Owen was doing, and nodded in approval once he saw what Owen was drawing.

When they were just kids and first dating, Owen would draw her all the time. They’d send each other secret notes, in hopes Abby’s dad or the other Fireflies wouldn’t catch on to the fact they were seeing each other.

After ten minutes, Owen figured his drawing of Abby was the best it was going to get, and he tapped Lev on the shoulder to get his opinion. Lev looked at the drawing and smiled, taking a hand off the wheel to give Owen a thumbs up.

Satisfied with that approval, he sauntered over to Abby. The sailboat was moving leisurely and the wind had slowed, so Owen figured there was minimal chance the paper would fly out of his hands. 

“Hey,” he began, the paper hid behind his back.

“Hi,” she replied lightly.

“Remember that time you wrote me that super sappy note back in Salt Lake and Jordan found it and I had to play it off like I had no idea who wrote me that.”

Abby was fighting back a smirk, “Yeah and you were like ‘oh my god must be a secret admirer.’” She chuckled, “He actually believed you and offered to help you track this secret admirer down. He thought it was _Nora_.”

Owen laughed, “Yeah that he did.” For some reason he felt a bit nervous now. “You might remember, my notes also contained drawings if I managed to catch you unawares.” He brought out the paper, folded softly in half from behind his back. 

“This is another one of those times.” Owen said sheepishly.

“Wait, you drew me just now?” Abby looked back to where Owen had been sitting, Lev gave her a guilty grin. Abby turned back to Owen where he offered the drawing. She took it gingerly and looked at his depiction of her, face turned away, loose hair lightly blowing from the wind. Under it the caption _Well, these damn hands tried again. Hope I did you justice this time._

Abby smiled when she read that, she remembered the reference from his past sketch of her.

She looked up at him, almost shyly.

“Thank you. I really like it.” 

  
  
  


It had taken nearly two months to make it all the way down to Santa Barbara with them having to dock for supplies multiple times along the way. Owen had grown a sea captain’s beard on the trip, but them finally making landfall in Santa Barbara, and it being hot as hell, was reason enough for him to shave it off when they got there. The town he thought, was beautiful. _Even if there’s no Fireflies here, it might be nice to stay here_.

He had managed to barter with a guy there who claimed to have information as to where the Fireflies were located. Though it cost him a gun for the info, it was better that he did the talking to strangers than Abby. She and Lev were very recognizable, and Owen was still a bit paranoid about those trespassers that were hunting them down before they left. He’s told Abby the same, but she didn’t seem to think that they’d find them all the way out here.

“2425 Constance… there,” pointed Abby.

That was the address the man had given them. The three went inside, but upon entering it seemed empty. None of them seemed to want to accept that fact though.

“For some reason, I believe that info. There has to be something here.” said Abby, checking behind the couch.

“Hey, what about these scratches?” called Lev. Abby and Owen went over to the bookcase where he pointed.

“That’s gotta be it,” said Owen, suddenly very excited. “Hey Abs let’s push this.”

The duo pushed the bookcase over the scratched floorboards to reveal a doorway into the cellar. They looked at eachother and headed down. Immediately however, it was evident no one had been there for a while.

“Let’s look around,” Owen encouraged, turning on his flashlight. They all began poking around the room. 

“I think they had power here,” said Abby, looking at a dead radio on a desk.

“Here,” replied Owen, spotting the switch on the wall and moving to turn it on. The room flooded with light.

Abby went over to the radio and tried to use it.

“Is this frequency currently in use?” she asked tentatively. She stopped and looked at Owen. “Do you see a call sign anywhere?” 

Owen quickly rummaged through the desk. Abby tried to call again. “This is Abby from Santa Barbara. Can anyone hear me? Standing by.”

Owen found a call list under the map nearby. “It’s here, Abs.”

Abby smiled nervously, “Okay. Here goes.”

“Do you want me to do it?” Owen asked gently.

“No, no I can.” she replied, typing the first code.

“Is this frequency currently in use?” she tried, no response.

Abby punched in the next code and tried again, still no response.

“They’re gonna be there. I know they are.” Owen murmured and rubbed her shoulder, not sure if he was trying to convince her or himself. What if he led them here for nothing?

“Is this frequency still in use, hello? This is Abby from Santa Barbara. Can anyone hear me? Please answer.”

Each second that went by with no answer seemed to cut through Owen’s hopes like a knife. 

Then.

“Hi Abby. We got a clear signal on you. Where in Santa Barbara are you calling from?” 

The three jumped up in shock.

“Um, 2425 Constance. We got a tip about a base, but there’s no one here. We’re looking for Fireflies. I’m a Firefly.”

“I’m Owen Moore, I’m also a Firefly.” added Owen, his heart racing.

“Where were you stationed?” said the voice over the radio.

“We were part of the Salt Lake outpost.” continued Abby.

“Who ran that facility?”

“Dr. Jerry Anderson. He was my dad.” answered Abby.

“Well how about that. We pulled everyone back from the satellite stations and brought them back here to home base,” replied the radio voice.

“How many of you are there?” asked Owen.

“We’re about… two hundred strong right now. With a few more every month” said the radio.

Abby and Owen grinned at each other. _Holy shit. The Fireflies were really regrouping. They found them._

Abby looked at Owen with tears welling. She didn’t say anything but he knew what she meant. He was too happy to gloat.

Abby called back in, “You’re about to get three more. How do we find you?”

“Get to Catalina Island. Approach the large domed building in Avalon. We’ll find you.”

“Okay,” said Abby with a shaking breath, “Okay we’ll see you soon. Over and out.”

The man on the radio replied, “Looking forward to it. Good luck, Abby and Owen from Santa Barbara. Over and out.”

Lev was grinning and bouncing up and down excitedly behind them, and Owen swore he’d never felt this excited before. He was grinning ear to ear, as was Abby. “We fucking found them.” He said before pulling her into a tight hug. 

“I should have believed you sooner,” Abby murmured into his shoulder. Owen was about to tease her with a ‘ _What was that?’_ when she then pulled back, looked him in the eyes for a moment, and gave him a kiss on the lips.

Owen sunk into her and then smiled stupidly after they pulled away, his head buzzing. “I do accept kisses as apologies, but I think I’m gonna need a few more from you to fully make up for this.”

“Shut up,” said Abby playfully pushing away. Her cheeks were flushed. “Let’s get back to the sailboat.”

The three set off and Lev caught up next to Abby, “I can’t believe you guys were right.” He mused, following Abby closely between the boxes stacked in the garage of the house. Abby had squeezed through, when:

_BAM_

Suddenly, Abby was hit by a bat held by a man waiting just outside their view. Stumbling, she was jumped from behind by a woman, hiding on the other side. As Abby fell to the ground, two more figures came into view. 

“Cover me from here.” hissed Owen to Lev, pushing past him to shoot his pistol from between the boxes. Letting off four shots, he hit the woman who jumped Abby in the chest and the man with the bat in the leg. He then scrambled from the garage, and Lev took his position.

Owen spotted a second man coming towards him and shot him twice in the shoulder and neck. The man with the bat was still alive, and was trying to subdue Abby on the ground with his bat. With a _whizz_ of an arrow, Lev stuck the man in the head and he slumped over. The woman Owen had shot rolled and grabbed the bat. She then swung, trying to get at Owen from his position by the side of the garage. She hit him in the stomach and he was stunned for a second, stumbling. Owen then dodged her next hit and adjusting his aim as quick as he could, shot her point blank through the jaw.

“Aw, fuck!” cried a deep voice around the corner. A fourth man, larger than the others, had Abby in a headlock and a gun to her head. Lev had just hit him in the side with an arrow.

Owen moved to the side to the view of Lev and the man, slowly inching closer. _One bullet left in the chamber._

“Both of you boys better put your fucking weapons down, or this bitch gets it!” the man boomed.

Owen locked eyes with Abby, who was struggling against the man, and tried to think of what to do. Then, in a silent conversation, Owen saw Abby relax. No. He saw her hold the man still.

_BANG_

Owen let off his last bullet through the eye of the man, before the man could react. His head rolled back and his grip on the gun loosened, then he fell to the ground with a thud. Owen ran to catch Abby before she fell with him, her face and hair splattered with the man’s blood.

“Shit. Abby, are you okay?” Owen asked, holding her up.

“Yeah, yes. That was too fucking close.” She replied numbly.

“Lev are you alright?” Owen asked Lev, who was making sure the bodies of the ambushers were still.

“I’m fine,” Lev replied, voice trembling a bit.

“Good. Good.” Owen let out a breath. “Okay. Let’s get back to the sailboat before more show up.”

  
  


The mood eventually lightened on the trip to Catalina Island. Their close call back in Santa Barbara became a distant thought as the three’s anticipation grew. When they finally spotted the island, Owen felt a rush of emotion come pouring in. 

“There it is.” Owen murmured, and Abby came up to him and put her arm around him, staring across the sea. The sun had just begun to rise. _Look for the light_ , he thought.

Lev moved to the bow of the boat as well, and Abby pulled him in to her other side.

Abby looked up at Owen, sun dancing off her blonde hair and reflecting golden in her irises.

“You ready?”

**Author's Note:**

> I just keep having fics I want to read but then they don't exist and I have to write them, lol. If anyone wants to expand on this idea, be my guest! :)


End file.
